Chapter 200: Sing for me again
Faith felt it first, not because she was stronger than the others, and not because she understood what was happening, but because something deep inside her responded to the change in a way she could not ignore, and as her voice faded into the silence, her chest tightened slightly while her eyes moved across the room, taking in the sight before her with growing confusion.
Everyone was down.
Pam, who had stood so proudly before, was now struggling to keep herself from collapsing completely, her body trembling as she fought against something she could not see, her hands pressed against the ground as cracks spread beneath her fingers. The guards and judges who had shouted so confidently earlier were now flattened against the floor, their faces pale, their breaths uneven as if even the simple act of breathing had become difficult.
The air felt heavy.
Too heavy.
As if something vast had descended without warning and claimed everything within its reach.
Faith swallowed, her gaze moving slowly, carefully, until it landed on Ivira and Cornelia.
They were standing.
Not struggling.
Not trembling.
Just... standing.
Ivira’s white hair fell gently over her shoulders as she looked around with a calm expression that did not match the situation, while Cornelia stood beside her, her long curly hair resting against her back, her eyes focused yet steady, as if the crushing force around them had chosen to ignore them completely.
Faith blinked, her mind trying to catch up.
"Why..." she whispered, her voice barely audible even to herself.
Ivira narrowed her eyes slightly, her gaze moving toward Cain, who stood in the same place as before, untouched, unmoved, as if he existed outside of everything that was happening.
Cornelia’s lips parted slightly as she spoke in a low voice. "This... is his doing."
Faith’s heart skipped.
His doing.
Her eyes slowly turned back toward Cain, her chest tightening as a strange feeling rose within her, something that was not fear, but something close to it.
"Is this..." she began, her voice uncertain.
Ivira finished her thought, her tone calm yet filled with quiet realization.
"The power of an Overgod."
Cornelia’s gaze remained fixed on Cain, her expression unreadable. "Then why are we not affected..."
Faith clenched her hands slightly, her thoughts racing as she tried to make sense of it all.
Why them.
Why only them.
Why were they standing when everyone else was crushed into the ground like they were nothing.
And then, a thought appeared.
Not from logic.
Not from observation.
But from something she felt.
"...Because of him," Faith whispered.
Ivira and Cornelia did not respond, but neither of them denied it.
Their connection.
That blood pact.
The invisible thread that bound them together.
Was it protecting them.
Or was it something else.
But even as that question formed, another one rose, far more important.
Why now.
Why would Cain reveal something like this.
For a moment.
For something as simple as a song.
Ivira’s gaze hardened slightly. "He is not doing this for us."
Cornelia nodded slowly. "No... he is not."
Faith felt her chest tighten.
"Then why..."
Her voice trailed off, because deep down, she already knew the answer.
And that answer made her heart beat faster.
Because what they had no idea.
What none of them truly understood.
Was that Cain did not care.
Not about the blood pact.
Not about the consequences.
Not about the people around him.
Not even about them.
Because in this moment.
There was only one thing that mattered.
That glimpse.
That feeling.
That place beyond everything he had ever known.
And for that—
He would give up anything.
Cain’s mind was clear.
Clear in a way it had not been for a long time.
Everything unnecessary had been pushed aside.
Everything that did not contribute to his goal had been discarded without hesitation.
Because this was not something he could afford to ignore.
In his last life, he had stood at the peak of existence, an Overgod who had crushed countless enemies, who had shaped and destroyed universes, who had reached a level that others could not even imagine, and yet even then, he had never stopped searching.
He had always believed there was something more.
Something beyond.
Something above.
And that belief had driven him to do things that even he could not fully justify.
He remembered it.
The moment he had crossed a line that should not have been crossed.
The moment he had set his eyes on a being that should have been left alone.
A being above all.
Not a god.
Not an Overgod.
But something beyond those definitions.
He had planned.
Schemed.
Prepared everything.
Gathered power, knowledge, allies, sacrifices.
All for one purpose.
To kill that being.
Not out of hatred.
Not out of anger.
But out of desire.
Because he believed that if he could destroy it, if he could take what it had, if he could understand it—
Then he could become it.
But he had failed.
Completely.
Not because he was weak.
But because the gap between them had been too great.
Too absolute.
Too final.
And yet—
Even in that failure—
He had not given up.
Because the desire had never faded.
And now.
Now he had felt it again.
Not fully.
Not completely.
But enough.
Enough to know that it existed.
Enough to know that it could be reached.
And that was all he needed.
Cain’s gaze softened slightly as he looked at Faith, his voice calm, almost gentle.
"Can you sing for me again?"
Faith hesitated.
Her fingers curled slightly as she looked at him, her heart beating faster, not because she was afraid, but because something in his voice felt different.
There was no arrogance.
No teasing.
No distraction.
Just a clear request.
And something deeper behind it.
"...Again?" she asked softly.
Cain nodded.
Faith took a small breath.
Then she began to sing.
Her voice rose once more, flowing into the air with the same softness, the same clarity, yet this time, there was a slight hesitation at the beginning, a small break in the rhythm that had been perfect before.
Her long, straight black hair moved gently as she sang, catching the light in a way that made it seem almost unreal, her eyes half closed as she focused on the melody, trying to follow the same path she had taken earlier.
Cain watched her closely.
Every movement.
Every breath.
Every note.
He traced it all.
Followed it.
Searched within it.
Waiting.
Hoping.
But—
Nothing.
The connection was not there.
That place.
That glimpse.
It did not appear.
Faith continued, her voice steady, her melody beautiful, yet no matter how much Cain focused, no matter how deeply he listened, it was not the same.
And when she finished, the silence that followed felt heavier than before.
Cain blinked once.
Then slowly, his expression tightened.
"...Again."
Faith looked at him, surprised.
But she did not refuse.
She nodded softly.
And began once more.
This time, she tried harder.
Her voice carried more emotion, more focus, more effort as she reached for something she could not fully understand, trying to recreate what had happened earlier, trying to find that same feeling.
The melody flowed.
Rose.
Fell.
Carried everything she had.
And yet—
Still nothing.
Cain’s eyes narrowed slightly.
He did not miss a single detail.
Not the way she opened her mouth.
Not the way her voice changed.
Not the way her breath moved.
He traced it all.
Analyzed it.
Compared it.
Again and again.
But the result did not change.
That glimpse—
Was gone.
And yet.
He was absolutely certain.
It had been there.
Not his imagination.
Not a mistake.
It had been real.
And that was what made this so frustrating.
Faith’s voice slowly came to an end.
The last note faded.
And she looked at him.
Her expression soft.
Hopeful.
"...So?"
Cain stood there for a moment.
Silent.
Then he nodded once.
"It’s good."
Faith blinked.
Her lips curved into a small smile.
But then, she tilted her head slightly, her eyes looking at him with curiosity.
"And Cain..."
He looked at her.
"Yeah?"
She hesitated for a moment.
Then asked the question that had been lingering in her mind.
"...When did you get this strong?"